It’s the amount
of
alcohol that counts. For example, if
the same person drank three double martinis
(3
ounces
or
90
ml of liquor each) within an hour, the person’s
BAC would be close to 0.12 percent. A person who
consumes food just before or du.ring drinking will have a
somewhat lower BAC level.
There
is
a
gender difference, too. Women generally have
a lower relative percentage
of
body
water
than
men.
*
Since alcohol
is
carried in body water, this means that a
woman generally will reach a higher BAC level than a
man of her same body weight when each has the
same
number of drinks.
The law in many U.S. states sets the legal limit at a BAC
of 0.10 percent. In a growing number of
U.S.
states,
and
throughout Canada, the limit is
0.08
percent. In some
other countries, it’s even lower. The
BAC
limit for all
commercial drivers in the United States is
0.04
percent.
The BAC will be over
0.10
percent after three to
six drinks (in one hour).
Of
course, as we’ve seen, it
depends on how much alcohol is in the drinks, and how
quickly the person drinks them.
But the ability to drive is affected well below a BAC of
0.10 percent. Research shows that the driving
skills
of
many people are impaired at a BAC approaching
0.05
percent, and that the effects are worse at night. All
drivers
are
impaired at BAC levels above
0.05
percent.
Statistics show that the chance
of
being in a collision
increases sharply for drivers who have a BAC of
0.05
percent or above. A
driver
with
a
BAC level
of
0.06
percent has doubled his or her chance
of
having a
collision. At a BAC level
of
0.10
percent,
the
chance
of
this
driver having a collision
is
12 times greater;
at
a
level of 0.15 percent, the chance is
25
times greater!
4-3
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